Linda Burney (Barton, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Indigenous Australians) | Hansard source

There is no doubt that Australians have weathered a turbulent time over the last five years. A once-in-a-century pandemic, persistent inflation, high interest rates, two conflicts and global uncertainty have put Australians under more sustained cost-of-living pressures. When tax cuts were legislated under the previous government five years ago, our economy looked quite different. Such a big change in our economy needs a different response, a better response. Good governments do the right thing for the right reasons. Good governments prioritise people ahead of politics. Australians have told us that they are under pressure. They have told us that they need their government to act. Action is what this bill will deliver, and it delivers to every single taxpayer. Young Australians are better off. Older Australians are better off. Women are better off. Nurses, teachers and aged-care workers are some of those most likely to benefit. More than 95 per cent of those workers across Australia are getting a bigger tax cut.

It's communities like those in my electorate of Barton that need and deserve Labor's tax cuts. Constituents in my electorate have told me that cuts as they were legislated five years ago are not going to work for them. Organisations caring for our local communities have told me more people are coming to them for help. They've told me that the government needs to respond to the pressure Middle Australia is under. The government has heard these messages from Barton and communities across Australia loud and clear. That's why Labor's tax cuts mean that every Australian taxpayer—every single taxpayer—will receive a tax cut this year. In the electorate of Barton, 85 per cent of taxpayers will receive a bigger tax cut than under the previous government.

I want to tell you, Mr Deputy Speaker, what tax cuts will really mean in communities like Barton's. Ninety per cent of women taxpayers will receive a bigger tax cut with Labor's tax cuts. For a schoolteacher at one of our wonderful local schools, it will be an average of $2,429. For a registered nurse at the beginning of her career at St George Hospital, it will be a tax cut of $1,554. Childcare, aged-care, and disability-care workers will benefit too.

For some here in this place, the first instinct was to go straight to politics. They made it clear their hearts weren't really in tax cuts for Middle Australia. They have said these numbers don't seem like much of a difference. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition even said that they would roll these changes back, making 11.5 million Australians pay more in tax. But Australians tell us what kind of difference this will make. It's meaningful cost-of-living relief delivered in a responsible way that doesn't add to inflationary pressures and that lays the foundation for a stronger and more resilient economy.

Cutting taxes for Middle Australia is a central part of our economic plan, but Labor's tax cuts proposed in this bill, the Treasury Laws Amendment (Cost of Living Tax Cuts) Bill 2024, are just one way in which we are providing important cost-of-living relief to families across Australia. Labor is focused on making the essentials more affordable for everyone. An additional 360,000 GP visits nationally were bulk-billed in the last two months, saving Australians $15 million. In my community of Barton, residents have already saved nearly $2 million on cheaper medicines because of our government. We've also delivered cheaper child care. Affordable high-quality child care is essential to boosting the participation of women in the workforce. It also prepares our children for success at school right through to year 12 and further education. The ACCC has found that, since their introduction in July 2023, boosts to subsidies and funding have meant that prices of early childhood education have dropped on average by 11 per cent across the country. The government is also supporting parents and children before they even go to preschool. From 2026 paid parental leave will increase to six months. This is the biggest expansion of paid parental leave since Labor introduced it when we were last in government. We've also taken action on the cost of living through electricity bill relief. From 31 July last year, our electricity bill relief has taken $125 off the power bills of New South Wales residents each quarter. That's vital support for millions of families, pensioners and concession card holders.

Energy bill relief, paid parental leave, more affordable child care, cheaper medicines, boosting bulk-billing and tax cuts to every taxpayer—that is how Labor is acting on the cost of living. The most recent inflation figures show a welcome moderation, but it's still too high. Treasury advice is clear that Labor's tax cuts will not add to inflationary pressures, because they are broadly revenue neutral. Stakeholders from the community sector, unions, economic experts and academics agree that Labor's tax cuts are a sensible response to a rapidly changing economic situation. This package of tax cuts is also a response to what Australians have been telling their government and their representatives to do about their concerns about cost of living and fairness and what aspiration actually means. Every Australian aspires for more for themselves and their children—not just to get by but to thrive. Ensuring that every taxpayer takes home more each week recognises that aspiration should not only be for those who are already doing well. Australia faces so many challenges. When good governments see problems, they listen and they act, and we have. Putting people above politics is about taking the best advice from experts. It's about listening to Australians, hearing about the problems they face. Those Australians rely on us to work for them, to respond to changing circumstances. I am proud to be part of a government that is doing exactly that—doing the right thing at the right time. I am pleased to support the government bill and I look forward to 1 July, when every taxpayer in the electorate of Barton will get a tax cut.

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